Norway: Sony’s PS3 “updates” actually downgrade system

A Norwegian government agency has filed a complaint against Sony due to its …

Norway's Consumer Council, an independent government agency, has received multiple complaints from PlayStation 3 owners over the removal of the "Other OS" functionality of the console. It has now taken the complaint to Norway's Consumer Ombudsman, with the Council claiming that Sony breached the Norwegian Marketing Control Act by removing a key feature after sale.

"Sony claims a universal right to change or remove functionality from the gaming console," Øyvind H. Kaldestad of the Consumer Council told Ars. "The Consumer Council strongly believes there needs to be a limit to what constitutes a reasonable change to products we buy—and that terms of service that grant the manufacturer full access to literally downgrade the product or limit the functionality are unreasonable and in clear violation of the Marketing Control Act."

There's also the issue of Sony's wording. "When a company use terms like 'updates' or 'upgrades,' it is reasonable to expect a significant improvement of the product and not the risk of being stuck with a lesser product," said the Council's Thomas Nortvedt in a statement.

The Consumer Ombudsman can reach out to the parties involved in disputes and negotiate a voluntary compromise, but somehow we doubt Sony is going to shrug and replace the Other OS functions of the PlayStation 3... although with the system now opened completely by hackers, there's little good reason not to do so. If no voluntary arrangement can be reached, the issue can be taken to the Market Council, a legal entity with the power to "issue decisions banning unlawful marketing and contract terms and conditions in standard contracts when deemed necessary in the interests of consumers."